Monthly Archives: October 2013

We have smartphones, smart TVs, smartwatches, and even smart fridges and appliances. Soon, thanks to a new technology company consortium, we will have fully integrated smart homes.

One of the reasons that many new technologies fail is because they only get the backing of one or two companies. The HD DVD is a recent example – while it offered exceptional quality, it really only enjoyed the backing of Toshiba. In contrast, Sony and Phillips were among the early backers of Blu Ray, and giant publishing companies like 20th Century Fox were soon brought on board. Ultimately, this meant that Blu Ray succeeded whereas HD DVD soon became a failed technology. Continue reading →

Dell users have been told that they can replace their laptop, after it emerged that a manufacturing process has led to the Latitude 6430u giving off an odour of cat wee.

Laptop owners often find that they have things to complain about. The nature of the device means that there is a lot of technology typically crammed into a relatively small package, and this is especially true of the high end devices that are usually geared towards business users. One such device is the Dell Latitude 6430u – an otherwise great device that has been found to be the cause of a strong cat urine smell.

Many users have complained of the smell, saying that they had initially blamed their cat, or had been told to try blasting air at the laptop fans to clean them. However, no matter what was tried and no matter which cat was blamed, the smell did not go away. Continue reading →

Microsoft has announced that Jonathan Ross will be joining them as executive producer, while Ashton Kutcher has been unveiled as product engineer for Lenovo.

Microsoft is really pushing its upcoming Xbox One console as a media platform, rather than a dedicated gaming console. They aim to combine the features of a gaming device with Internet and streaming TV, access to rented films, and as a means of accessing various other types of media. In order to help them towards this end, the manufacturing and software giant has enlisted Jonathan Ross to join their team as an executive producer.

On the appointment, Ross said “I’m thrilled to be joining forces with Microsoft Studios” and he went on to say that his “love of games, movies and TV made this partnership a no-brainer. And they said they’d give me an Xbox One for free, so how could I possibly refuse?” Continue reading →

High end audio equipment manufacturers Bang & Olufsen have unveiled three new wireless Beolab speakers that will be available from November – expect to part with a considerable sum to get any of these.

Bang & Olufsen are known for producing high end, and therefore very expensive, audio equipment. They don’t always get their design ideas right but when they do, they create some of the most beautiful and some of the best quality equipment money can buy. Technophiles, though, have to have deep pockets to afford the devices that are launched. You should expect to pay thousands for virtually anything that is available from the Danish designers.

The new line of Beolab wireless speakers are certainly no exception to this last rule. The Beolab 17, 18, and 19 utilise the latest in wireless technology developed by B&O, offering what the company describes as “immaculate wireless sound”. Continue reading →

Google owned Motorola has announced that it will launch Project Ara, which enables users to essentially build their own smartphones using the components they want included.

Modular phone design is something that has yet to really grab the imagination. The principle is certainly sound. You can add keyboards, choose the design of the case, and even opt for the most appropriate size of screen. Essentially, you can create the phone that would have built if you had the seemingly unlimited funds of somebody like Google. However, there are some inherent problems with the idea. A phone can only offer so much modular design before it becomes a laptop, and parts that click in and out run the risk of becoming damaged.

Recently, Phonebloks was announced. It looks a bit like Lego but it enables you to make calls, play games, use apps, and text, just like a smartphone does. It turns out that Dutch designer Continue reading →

GTA V may have broken numerous records and been lauded as the saviour of console games, for the time being at least, but it has been knocked off its perch by the Caped Crusader. The highly anticipated (by us, at least) Batman: Arkham Origins has gone straight in at number 1 pushing GTA V into second, FIFA 14 into 3rd, and Skylanders: Swap Force into 4th position. There’s still no separating Pokemon X and Pokemon Y as they take 5th and 6th position respectively.

1 (-) – Batman: Arkham Origins

Rarely do film franchises translate well into games, and even more rarely do thos film franchises that include superheroes make the grade. The Batman: Arkham games have bucked that trend though. The third title in the series, Arkham Origins, takes everything that was great about the first two games, combines Old and New Gotham, and makes a few minor tweaks. It is well deserved of its place at the top. Continue reading →